30 moments in life
by Suzura
Summary: [Based on the 30 days OTP challenge] 30 times, less or more importants, in Shintaro's and Ayano's lifes, since their first close contact to the culminant point of their relationship, passing by awkward, funny or sweet moments between two young poeples who loves each others.
1. Day 1: Holding hands

Disclaimer: Kagerou Project and Mekakucity Actors are the property of Shizen no Teki-P (Jin) and Shaft,Inc. I do no receive any money for this text.

Note: The one-shot you are about to read is the first part of a writing project: 30 Shinaya one-shots based on the "30 days OTP challenge" themes. Since inspirations is a really capricious thing, I won't post an one-shot per day, but I'll try to post new one-shot as regularly as possible.

The rating is due to some scenes less "innocents" that will happend later.

I must also say that English isn't my first language, and even if I try my best to making my text understandable, it will probably comporting errors; so, if some errors in this one-shot had particularly bugs you, feel free for telling me! It would be very helpful!

The scene takes place a few minutes after the end of the anime. This is also the first time ever that I write about Shinaya and Kagerou Project in general, so I hope nobody will be too "out of character" ^^'

It's not really the point of this note, but: happy birthday to our red angel, Tateyama Ayano!

Well, I've finish this (way too long) introduction. So... Even if I'm very unsure about my text, I hope you'll enjoy it!

* * *

**Contact**

"Shintaro! Hurry up!"

The young man glanced wearily at his friend. The heat was overpowering, and he sweated abundantly. What a weird idea, also, to wear a jacket in August!

In her white dress that waved cheerfully to the rhythm of her steps, Ayano don't suffer of the heat. She seemed cool, just like a blooming flower, her perpetual smile floating on her lips like for encouraging her NEET friend to peak up the pace for avoid getting behind the others Mekakushi-Dan's members. One day, Kido (or Tsubomi, as Ayano preferred call her) also should tell him her secret for giving no sign of sweating with 27°C at the shadow!

The heat haze floating in the air, added to Shintaro's vision spoiled by the computer screen, gived to his friends walking before him an illusory aspect, making them looking like ghost. The young man stopped and shook his head, like for banning this unpleasant thought of his mind.

Seeing him doing that, Ayano finally gave up the idea of rejoining the others and slowed her perky pace for following Shintaro's shuffling walk

"That's what happens when you spend all time at the computer!"

"Hey! It suits me perfectly! If I'm here, it's only because..."

Shintaro shut his mouth immediately, while his cheeks stained a shameful red. Why did he speak so much? He tried to regain composure as spluttering:

"Be...Because I don't want Momo start to flirting with boys! I'm her big brother! I'm responsible for her!"

"Well... It seems like I influence the others, finally! I even make you protecting your sister!"

"You know, it's not like I didn't care at all about her..."

His interlocutor cocked her head to one side, like for encourage him to keep going.

"You know, after our father's death, I became the "Man of the house". It was me who went to school to get Momo, who helped her with her homework... Well, it doesn't mean that I did it cheerfully, but still..."

"One day, at school, a boy has annoyed her, and I went to explain with him..."

"You get in a fight for your sister?" Said her friend, impressed

"Well... In fact, I told him to stop annoying Momo. He said that I had nothing to tell to him, and I answered that I was older than him. It seems like he took it for a fight proposal, since he gave me a punch in the nose and I've come back to home with blood dripping."

Ayano could not restrain a laugh.

"You gave me the confirmation that it was really you!"

"Yeah, and Momo can't taking me seriously anymore!" Said Shintaro, smiling despite himself.

The two continued to walk side by side, without saying anything. Their conversation seemed to have relaxed the young man and their step was a bit livelier, though insufficient to catch up their comrades who were walking about fifty yards. Their conversation's echoes and their laughs that reached them seemed far away, unintelligible for them because they preferred using their intellectual faculties for searching a conversation topic instead of spying others ones.

Definitely short of idea, Shintaro turned to Ayano. She stared at the ground, her face rendered invisible by her dark brown ticks, so he could only see that she nipped her lower lips. Suddenly, she looked up and said simply:

"The weather is beautiful, today!

Embarrassed that she caught him as he looked at her, he stammered quickly:

"Wha... Wha-at ?"

She had a strange glance, mixing embarrassment, apology, and perhaps a hint of amusement. Her cheeks became red, surely of shamefulness. She looked at the ground, apologizing:

"I'm sorry; I think I've stated the worst conversation topic ever. Time pass, but I keep my biggest problem: my stupidity!"

They stayed a few second without saying anything, in an awkward silence, until Ayano looked up, smiled again and finally added:

"We should join the others... Plus, Takane and Shuuya probably going to say that we flirt if we stay together for too long!"

And, without waiting for her friend's answer, she started to run... But she stumbled on a badly paved part of the pavement and fell on the ground.

"Your biggest problem is your lack of attention" said Shintaro. "Come on." He added while taking her hand for helping her to get up.

Smiling again, Ayano rushed while still holding the hand of her friend.

While still holding his hand...

"Don't say ANYTHING, whatever happens, DON'T SAY ANYTHING! Stay cool, Shintaro, she just have lead you by the hand, it mean NOTHING in any romantical perspective, it's something absolutely normal between two friends, so don't blush like an idiot...".

His friend ran without turning back for looking at him, so he didn't know if she was embarrassed or not. He knew only that, she was embarrassed or not, she would always show her face illuminated by her joyful smile.

She was always smiling, hiding her real feelings. Shintaro, his face red, couldn't consider that she didn't feel awkward with a situation like this. For a very simple reason.

They knew each others for almost two years (not counting the years Ayano spent in the Heat Haze), but it was the first time they were so close.

During seconds that, for Shintaro, looked like eternity (but a very pleasant eternity), they ran and joined the others the Mekakushi-Dan members. Takane welcomed them by saying, half-amused, half-tenderized:

"Two lovebird separate during two years that happily flirt while not giving a dawn about their friends and family reaction! Isn't it so cute ?"

"Takane, please..." Reply Ayano, blushing again, but way more lightly than with Shintaro. She came nearer to her friend for whispering into her ear: "I know others lovebirds which has been separeted during two years and..."

"What is the matter ?" Asked Haruka, next to Takane.

"No-nothing ! Also, why do you ask me that ? Let me talking with my friend!" exclaimed Takane with embarrassement

Just next to them, Momo reproached his lack of exercise to her big brother, without even noticing his close contact with Ayano.

"I don't have fans for training me to run all over the town!" Replied Shintaro.

"To run all other the town? How did you know this"

"Er, well, er... I was reading informations topic and, purely by coincidence, I found an article of august 15th, that said you had be seen running all over the town, purchased by your fans, with a little boy..."

"You stalk me ? I'm old enought for taking care of myself!"

"I wasn't stalking you! It was purely a coincidence..."

"_A little boy? _I am twelve!" Added Hibiya, momentarily freeing himself from his contemplation of Hiyori for correcting journalists's monumental mistake of takes him for a child.

All these sentences, said indiscriminately, caused them forgetting the hand by hand arrival of the two young poeples.

It is slightly strange when you know that, during this sweltering summer day, a long time passed before Ayano and Shintaro release their hands.


	2. Day 2: Cuddling somewhere

Disclaimer: Kagerou Project and Mekakucity Actors are the property of Shizen no Teki-P (Jin) and Shaft,Inc. I do no receive any money for this text.

Warnings: Possible grammaticals errors (English is not my first language), possible OOC-ness

Well... The only thing I have to say is that I'm sorry for the fews persons who liked the first one-shot and wanted to read the followings. I hope you'll enjoy this one and that the next will come faster !

**Day 2: Cuddling somewhere**

"Is there someone here?"

Only the echo answered him. As he closed the door, Shintaro peered into the obscurity. The Mekakushi-dan occupied a portion of a disused factory and, even if the dark immensity that stretched before him was only the corridor that made communicating the rooms together, he was surprised by the fact that nobody came for welcoming him.

At the summer's end, Shintaro promised to the others that he would came see them every weeks, but lately, he worked hard on his songs and the only exchange he had with other humans beings were the "Yeah, yeah" he used to answer to Momo and his mother when they asked him if he was fine. After almost three weeks with hardly any human contacts, he wanted to relax the pressure and seeing the Dan's members. Not for anything important. Just for talking a little with Haruka, arguing with Takane, watching Kido yelling at Kano, admiring Seto's patience with Marry, or watching stealthily Ayano's warm smile. To feel that he had people he could see when he didn't wanted to be alone. People, other than his mother and his sister, who knew him, didn't judge him when he was locked in his room, and just teased him and enjoyed his company.

Still surprised by the atmosphere of death of the place, Shintaro pushed the first door, the living-room's one. He stayed on the thereshold.

The coffee table had been reversed and some books were lying on the floor, soiled by a liquid that seemed to be ice tea. Broken glass layed. And, in the middle of this mess was standing Marry, clenched fist and tight lips, visibly trying to not burst into tears. She looked up when she heard the opening of the door, and paused before reacting.

"Shintaro!"

She seemed happy of seeing him, but in the same time discomforted, maybe even ashamed, to seeing him coming in a context, it seemed, unfavourable.

The young man, who stayed speechless, looked at her in the eyes and said hoarsely:

"There was the Third World War here?

Marry looked down.

"Oh, yes, right; you must having lost the count, given the number of times that a war broken out between Kano and Kido!" He added in a vain attempt to be humorous.

Marry's inferior lips trembled. Shintaro cursed himself.

"Marry, I didn't want to..."

But before he could do anything, tears had begun to flow down the medusa's cheeks.

Helpless with the crying peoples, Shintaro just stayed in front of her, speechless.

"_What's happened?"_

The question ran in his head but didn't seem to want to go past his lips. He continued to watching Marry sobbing without making any movement.

After endless minutes, Marry managed to stammer:

"It's Kano... And Kido..."

"They are the one who did this?" Asked the young man, no shocked that much.

"They... Quarreled..."

"_Nothing new."_

Just a quarrel slightly more violent than the others. He understood that Marry could feel bad after that, but it wasn't a big deal.

"With... Ayano..."

"_With Ayano?!"_

Shintaro felt like his body congealed. Ayano?!

Kido and Kano had a quarrel with Ayano?

Their big sister they idolized?

The person Shintaro imagined the least with the word "quarrel" nearby?

Too much questions jostled in his mind. Why? How the quarrel could became so violent? Why Haruka, Takane and Seto didn't intervened?

As he was wondering, the door suddenly opened, and Seto entered in the room.

"Marry" He shouted when he saw her in tears.

Seeing Shintaro, surprise passed in his eyes, then he gave him a brief nod before heading to Marry, taking he by her shoulder and outside the room.

Left alone, Shintaro looked at the floor. He sighted.

"I hate when other's houses are a mess."

He start to put the cushions on the couch, to open the wet books on the coffee table to dry it, and reunite the broken glass, pushing them by the foot.

Some minutes later, Seto returned and start to speak quickly and nervously.

"Marry is going better, I spoke with her, she calmed down and I left her in her room so she can regain her composure while…"

"What happened?" Interrupted Shintaro

Seto sent back a strange, sad look. He seemed different form his normal self; his smile was gone, replaced by a weary and melancholic expression, and his body, that habitually seemed so strong and powerful, gave the impression to be too heavy for the young man, and that he had the biggest trouble for walking with such a body.

"It's… Well…"

He collapsed on the couch, then looked up at his interlocutor.

"It's complicated."

The young man with the red jersey stared at him without saying anything. Conscious that he couldn't go away without explanation, Seto took a deep breath and began:

"As I said, it's kinda difficult to explain… But… I'll try to resume everything… (He took a new breath). This morning, we saw that Ayano wasn't in her bed. We were worried, 'cause this isn't in her habit to leave like that, without telling anything to anyone, but Takane persuaded us to leave her alone with that.

"I have no idea of what she did during the morning, but around 1 hour PM, she came back. She looked tired and held a briefcase. Since Haruka and Takane where going shopping and Marry was resting, she reunited us here, Kido, Kano and me.

"She told us that she entered in our father's house and found, in our mother's office, documents that revealed that another person knew about the research that our mother did about the medusas, the doctor Akira Sato; and that he really believed in the medusa's existence.

"At that time, we didn't understand where she was getting at, but she told us that, since a long time already, she thought that we must try to live a normal life again; she thought that get in touch with the doctor Sato was the best decision we could make. But she wasn't expecting Kido and Kano's reaction…

"They… They literally exploded. I know, it seem impossible… They both love Ayano so much… But… I guess they have took it as Ayano said "You can't fend by yourselves"… And they get angry. Really angry. I don't really remember what they said at this point… They yelled at each others, all the three, and they accidentally reversed the table… I tried to calm them down, without success… I think it was at this point that Marry heard us and entered… But I'm not sure… Whatever, they finally stop to yell, probably because they couldn't make a sound anymore… Ayano seemed to can't take it anymore, so I drove out Kido and Kano. At this moment, it's me who yelled! I could see that Kano wanted to retort, but he was too exhausted for that… At the end, Kido said that they needed to take their mind off all of this, and they left together. When I came back, Marry was crying, you were by her side, and you know what happened back."

There was been a long silence. Only the clock's second-hand made any sound. Seto looked at the ground, avoiding Shintaro's gaze. After a long time, Shintaro asked, throat tied:

"Ayana… Is she all alone? In her room?"

Seto nodded slowly.

"_No more fighting alone."_

He said her that, last summer. For convincing her that, despite what she believed, it wasn't while acting alone in every timeline and staying prostrate in the Heat Haze during two years that she would be able of saving everyone's future.

But now, this phrase sounded differently for him. As "You won't fight alone anymore. Whatever happens, I'll be by your sides."

Shintaro was far to be most caring or the most comforting person; he didn't even knew how comforting peoples. And he wasn't either the kind of persons who did promises.

But Ayano was different. When they were in middle school, this girl, who seemed sticky and slightly soppy, whom he would normally had avoid like the plague, became important for him. Even if she annoyed him, even if sometime he would have preferred being alone, even if he never showed her that he enjoyed being with her, he was always happy when she came to see him with her big smile, showing him her last paper crane.

All these things he missed during two years.

He felt alone. He felt sad. Sometime, he even felt anger against Ayano.

And last summer, he learnt what happened. He understood that he wasn't the only one who had felt alone and sad.

And he didn't wanted that Ayano endure this kind of feelings again.

"I'll see her."

"Wha…? But…" Stammered the green-dressed boy, distraught.

"I…"

Shintaro didn't end his sentence. He was too embarrassed of a confessing the sort-of promise that he thought he had to keep.

Seto looked at him for a few moment, then a little smile born on his lips.

"I guess you are right… At least, you can't hurt her."

He opened the door, beckoned him and pointed out the dark corridor.

"Her room is the fifth! I have to leave you, I'll check on how is Marry.

He looked at Shintaro in the eyes.

"Good luck!" He said with an encouraging smile.

At this moment, the red-dressed young man felt that something passed between them. It was a sort of invisible link which had woven between them. Without having to speak, they was on the same wavelength.

A few moments later, Shintaro was standing in front of Ayano's room, and he felt a little slump in his belly. At the end, he took a great inspiration, seized the handle and opened the door.

*/~|~\\*

When she heard the door's creaking, Ayano slightly shuddered without thereby raising her head of her soaked blanket. She was afraid. She knew that, whoever was here (Kosuke, Takane, Haruka, or even Tsubomi or Shuuya), she wouldn't be able of speaking without bringing back tears.

She felt ashamed of having angered so much her brother and her sister, but in the same time, she lived this quarrel as a reject of what she wanted to do for their good sake, and she had the feeling of being misunderstood.

An unbearable feeling.

Several seconds passed, before a voice rise, hesitant:

"Ayano?"

The young woman brusquely raise her head, to find herself in front of the person who was, in the same time, the one she wanted the most and the less to see.

At least, the _living_ person she wanted to see the most.

The young woman realized only after a few moments that Shintaro just saw her with the face in a pillow and the backside up, her eyes red and inflated her cheeks still wet, runny nose.

She restrained herself, sat normally and wiped her eyes with her sleeve. Shintaro stood up at one or two meters of the bed, looking at her with a indefinable gaze.

After a moment, he sat by her sat down beside her.

They stayed like that during several minutes, without saying anything, without looking at each other.

Ayano didn't want to talk. She wished her mother was here. That she came in the room and took her in her arms. That she said her that she didn't have to worry. That she did her best. That they only had to talk about it later, calmly, and that everything will be alright.

But if her mother was alive, no one would think that Ayano was dead and gone. They wouldn't have to live in clandestinely. If Ayaka was alive, Ayano would just be a normal high school girl, who would prevent her littler brothers and sister from quarrelling, who would confess to her mother that she was in love with one of her classmates and who would do snowballs battler with her father and friends.

At this time, everything was so easy…

The young woman felt tears coming to her eyes…

She was crying, now. Tears flowed on her cheeks while she emitted little high-pitched noises.

Then, she felt carried forward. Shintaro brought her towards him and encircled her waist. Her head was close to his shoulder, and he laid his own head in the hollow of her shoulder.

It wasn't the same as with her mother. But Ayano had, at this moment, a feeling of warmth and security. It wasn't like the sensation she had when she left the Haze. At this time, she felt like she was made in stone; she was indestructible. Now, she was as fragile and vulnerable as a porcelain doll. But nobody could ever break her, because Shintaro's warmth enveloped her and protected her.

Without even exactly realize what she was doing, Ayano snuggled up against the young man a little more. It's been so long that she didn't had, in such a precise way, the feeling that someone kept her away from any danger.

After a long moment, Shintaro made a gesture, as he wanted to separate from her.

"Wait." His friend restrained him.

She wanted to extend this feeling a little more. This warmth. This impression of being protected.

The fact of being pressing up against Shintaro Kisaragi, simply.

*/~|~\\*

"_Repeat?_"

Takane collapsed onto the couch and looked at Seto, stunned. For his part, Haruka stared at the young man, open-mouthed.

"Ayano, Kido and Kano quarrelled until Aya-nee be literally out.

Takane got up and start pacing while waving her arms in the air.

-This little… She exclaimed while acting like she tightened her hand around someone's neck. This little… Kano!

She did an about-face and added:

"Where is Ayano?"

"In her room, but…"

"_In her room_? Your sister is currently probably crying her heart out, all alone, and you stay here, as if nothing happened?"

"Wait…"

"There are no "wait"! Exclaimed Takane, furious. Come on, we'll see her!"

"SheisnotaloneShintaroiswithher."Responded Seto at full speed.

His interlocutor froze.

"What did you said?"

Seto swallowed.

"In fact, a few minutes after I took out Kano and Kido, Shintaro came and I explained him what happened… Juste after that, he went seeing how was Aya-nee in her room and he didn't came out yet.

Takane staring at him, open-mouthed, then send a questioning look at Haruka. The young man shrugged his shoulders and had an uncertain smile:

"Wouldn't it be better if we let them alone?"

Takane continued to looking alternately at the two boys, not knowing what to say. She end up by smiling with a knowing air, and calmly sat down on the couch. She said with a low voice, like for herself:

"Well, at the end, they didn't needed that much boost…"

Some hours later, Seto, Takane, Haruka and Marry were going to sat at the table, while they didn't got any life sign from Kido and Kano, or Ayano and Shintaro.

"Wouldn't it be better if we'd go to see how Ayano and Shintaro are doing?

The quarter came across the corridor and, after having concerted in glance during some seconds without defining who was going to open the door, Seto and Takane ended up pressing the handle together.

On the bed, at the back of the room, two young people were sleeping, entwined.


End file.
